The Maremma is an extremely smart dog and a fast learner. The downside to this is they are just as quick to pick up bad habits as they are the good. As such, their training has to begin early and it has to be consistent and always fair throughout a dog’s life so they understand what's expected of them. They need to be handled with a firm, yet fair hand or they might to take on the role of dominant dog which is why they are best suited to people who are familiar with this type of working dog.
The key to successfully training a Maremma Sheepdog is to make things as interesting as possible and to avoid too much repetition. It's also a good idea to keep training sessions short which helps dogs stay more focussed on what it’s being asked of them, bearing in mind that the more intelligent a dog is, the faster they get bored, bearing in mind that Maremmas are extremely smart dogs and that they are independent characters by nature which can make training them challenging.
They do not answer well to harsh correction or any sort of heavy handed training methods, but they do respond extremely well to positive reinforcement which always brings the best out of these intelligent and quick witted dogs, especially when there are high value rewards involved in a training session.
